Falling inside the Black
by Scarlet-Sun-Queen
Summary: He was slowly slipping, trying to save himself...


"Speaking"

" _Thoughts"_

 _Song Lyrics_

" _ **Kyuubi talking"**_

Scarlet: Thanks for the reviews in my first Fanfiction! I appreciate your opinions and I am planning to write a One shot especially for Naruto´s friends! I will write it with the Song, Hero from Skillet, so see you soon! ^^

Disclaimer: I don´t own Naruto nor the Song Falling Inside the Black from Skillet.

 _Tonight I'm so alone_

 _This sorrow takes a hold_

 _Don't leave me, it's so cold_

 _Never wanna be so cold_

It wasn´t unusual for Naruto to be sitting on his bed, legs drawn up to his chest, his arms hugging them close, head lying on them. Outside it was pitch black, almost no light, except for the few flashes of lightning from the raging storm that went on outside. Rain drops were slapping against his window, creating little sounds next to the thunder.

He should already be asleep, he had to wake up early to go to the Academy after all, but his apartment was so … _cold_. True, it was a bit chilly outside, but Naruto didn´t mean _that_ kind of cold. He meant the atmosphere. He tried to be outside the whole day, so he didn´t have to come back to his lonely place.

It was making him feel worse than all the insults he got through the day. He would gladly take a few glares and insults instead of _this_.

The only person he could go to was The Old man, but he didn´t _want_ to spend the night with him. Call him paranoid, but he didn´t even feel safe with the _**leader**_ _of the village_ when it was nightfall and he walked him back to his apartment. He was _still_ afraid he would get attacked.

He could only hope that when got older this cold would fade away.

He curled into himself more tightly. _"Just a few hours, then it will get better…"_ He tried to convince himself, the hollow feeling in his chest making his eyes prickle. The disappointment when the sun went down hurt more than it _should_.

It was clear from the beginning that the night would come again, so why did he feel like he wanted to cry?

 _Your touch used to be so kind_

 _Your touch used to give me life_

 _I've waited all this time_

 _I've wasted so much time_

Every time Naruto felt sadder than normal and he went to talk with his Old man. Sitting in his lap, the comforting smell, the warm hugs and the ruffling of his hair made him always feel better instantly. They would talk about their days, if something interesting happened. They would joke around and this, **_this_ ** is what Naruto needed and wished for the most.

Every visit made him cheer up, bringing out more of his confidence and pushing the sadness and hurt that he felt away. Making him forget that he _still_ had to return to his cold home at the end of the day.

Naruto would grin during his entire visit, but then an idea struck him suddenly and he looked towards his Old man, hopeful and kind of excited as he asked the question. Bouncing around in the lap he was sitting on.

"Do you know who my parents were? Could you tell me _please_?!" The first time he asked the question, the Old Man flinched and looked at him with so much sadness, Naruto could almost _feel_ it physically. He was picked up and hugged tightly.

The apology and the refuse to answer the question, cut him so deep, it would keep him up for the next month. Making him restless. Next time he asked for a photo and not names, because The Old man could give him that much **_right_**?

He got a shake of the head with a sad smile and asked himself why he even thought it could work.

Still, it would have been nice to have something to hold on and treasure in the cold night.

When he finally learned who his parents were he couldn´t help but feel angry at his Old man, who long ago perished, along with everyone who hid it from him. He waited for _so_ _ **long**_ , he even asked Jirayia if the Fourth was his father, because they _**must**_ have been _somehow_ related given how much they looked alike.

He wasted time waiting for an answer he should have known _from the beginning_ and it made him feel **betrayed**. He was so angry that he ignored Kakashi for a whole month.

The faces of the villagers at that time were kind of amusing to him, in a dark sense. But he tried to let it go, it didn´t matter to him anymore. He rarely even had cold nights anymore, because now he had _friends_.

 _Don't leave me alone_

 _Cause I barely see at all_

 _Don't leave me alone_

 _I'm_

How he hated _"_ _ **Dislike**_ _, because he wouldn´t hate_ _ **anybody**_ _."_ Sasuke during their younger days. How he had all the support he could have, the smiles from people and all he did was _push_ _them_ _**away**_. Naruto wanted nothing more than to beat him up to the point that he couldn´t even glare anymore. How could he _want_ to be alone?! It made no sense to him!

If he was in his situation he would take _every_ smile he could get, every little nice gesture Sasuke got and he would try to get over it because _**hating**_ _his brother_ wouldn´t _bring him back his dead family members_. So , why should he risk the hurt and loneliness if he choose that path? Seriously, for a prodigy Sasuke was dumb. _Utterly_ **stupid**.

He couldn´t win the fight and shake some sense in him, _not yet_ , so he would make sure that Sasuke even if he is an idiot, wouldn´t end up alone. Because Naruto had a bad feeling that Sasuke would want every friend he could find in the end.

Not to mention it was fun to anger the Bastard and he wouldn´t feel as alone anymore. So, a win-win situation for him!

 _Falling in the black, slipping through the cracks_

 _Falling to the depths, can I ever go back?_

 _Dreaming of the way it used to be, can you hear me?_

 _Falling in the black, slipping through the cracks_

 _Falling to the depths, can I ever go back?_

 _Falling inside the black_

 _Falling inside, falling inside_

 _The black_

The fight was what made him break a little inside. Leaving a scar that wouldn´t heal or be forgotten. The betrayal **burned** itself into his heart, which was already _so fragile_. The light in his eyes dimmed a bit, the first sign for a crack that formed.

How could Sasuke do _that_ to him!? _He said they were_ _ **friends**_ …

He wanted things to go back to as they were before. He would fight for it! He was _sure_ he would succeed! He made a promise and he would **keep it** even if it _killed_ him! He tried to fix the cracks as best as he could, trying to _shield_ them so they _wouldn´t get_ _ **bigger**_.

With every failed Sasuke mission, new cracks formed or the old ones got a bit bigger. It **terrified** him, but he didn´t let it show, instead he pushed himself to train, _because he wasn´t strong_ _ **enough**_ _, he_ _ **still**_ _couldn´t reach Sasuke._

When people asked him how he could stay so optimistic and did he really do all of that _just_ because his teammate _asked_ him and he _promised_ _her_?! He would shoot them a wry smile, eyes lighting up with steely determination as if he got ready for his _execution_.

He would just say "Yes.". It was half true, so he didn´t feel guilty for saying that. But he had another reason, a promise he made long ago, even _before_ Team 7 existed.

He promised to himself that he wouldn´t let Sasuke slip and _drown_ in his own darkness.

" _No_ _matter_ **how** much I slip or crack, I _**won´t**_ let you fall into your Black. Not if you have more a chance to escape it than me. I simply **refuse** to let that happen."

 _You were my source of strength_

 _I've traded everything_

 _That I love for this one thing_

 _Stranded in the offering_

 _Don't leave me here like this_

 _Can't hear me scream from the abyss_

 _And now I wish for you, my desire_

Naruto would scream at them, to "Get the _Hell_ _**away**_ from me!- _ **RUN**_ **!** " when he lost control of the Kyuubi Chakra. Trying to get them to _hear_ him, struggling for control, when he was already getting dragged down _, deep…so deep_ , into a deep unknown abyss.

He would scream his throat _raw_ , not giving up nor caring that nobody heard them, because these people he was probably _**hurting**_ _right now_ , were the ones that gave him the _strength_ to fight and if they would **die** , _Naruto_ would _fall apart_ and he _**couldn´t**_ let that happen.

He tried to push back up, he gave it his _**everything**_ , just to protect what he loved and when he _finally_ saw the sky and felt the Chakra being pushed _down_ and " _His_ _Friends were_ _ **save**_ _, thank god_!" he would let his eyes fall shut.

 _Don't leave me alone_

 _Cause I barely see at all_

 _Don't leave me alone_

 _I'm_

Sometimes he would have nightmares that involved his Friends leaving him behind. He would wake up drenched in his own sweat, trying to calm himself and finally giving up on sleeping for the night all together.

He wasn´t really sure what scared him _more_ , the nightmares where _he_ would **kill** _them_ or the ones where they would **die** _because_ _of him_ and leave him **alone**. _All alone_. No more warmth present, just that **cold** empty feeling _**again**_ , that would squeeze his heart, till he was sure it would _break_ from the pressure.

The Situation the world was in, wasn´t helping one bit in convincing him that they would make it through it.

 _Falling in the black, slipping through the cracks_

 _Falling through the depths, can I ever go back?_

 _Dreaming of the way it used to be, can you hear me?_

 _Falling in the black, slipping through the cracks_

 _Falling through the depths, can I ever go back?_

 _Falling inside the black_

 _Falling inside, falling inside_

Team 7 noticed it. Hell, the _whole_ **village** noticed it! How their stupid, reckless, self-sacrificing _"loveable, kind, amazing"_ friend, was slipping. At first it was slowly, his smiles getting a bit more forced, how his eyes would darken over when he was deep in thought, when they had no mission. They tried to ask him what´s wrong, because he was _scarring_ them, but it had the _opposite effect_. He tried to play it off, smiles getting bigger even though it wouldn´t even _reach_ his eyes anymore. The voice _louder_ than before as if it could _**drown**_ the silent problem with loudness.

The villagers tried to make up for it in slow steps. All feeling guilty because they were probably the _**main**_ reason as to why he was this _far_ down in his own personal hell. The regret _slowly_ eating them up, some of his friends were off even **worse**.

 **They couldn´t help him**. They couldn´t repay him back, _no matter_ **how** _hard_ they tried. Some didn´t even feel like they could ask him what was wrong, because they treated him like the villagers when they were all children, but they didn´t have a _reason_ for that. They were _cruel_ **just because**. It made them sick to their stomachs.

The worst was that Naruto wasn´t even blaming them, no he was smiling at them, like they were the most precious things in the world and that made them feel lower than dirt.

Naruto just wondered why some villagers would _flinch_ when he smiled at them, looking a bit hurt, and then confused when the villager started to _panic_ and _apologize_ even _**bowing**_ to him in the middle of the streets. He had _no idea_ what was wrong with them lately.

It didn´t help that when he tried to explain the situation to his friends, that _they_ looked like he had punched them in the stomach with the strength of Tsunade-baachan.

 _The black_

 _Black_

 _Black_

 _Black_

He never really liked the color Black. It was the color for funerals, the color of Sasuke´s cruse seal and it seemed evil. Everything about it was depressing. It reminded him of the empty feeling he got and he tried to avoid that color at all costs.

But when he saw an Orange and Black outfit similar to the one he wore in his childhood, he decided he would _challenge_ himself. He would wear the outfit, make it to his _new_ trade mark. It would be bright thanks to the orange, but he would make sure that every time someone saw this _mix of colors,_ they would feel _**safe**_.

Naruto would try to make the color somewhat brighter and not so depressing anymore. He was sure if he managed that, then he could make his own _darkness_ lighter. Form it into a **bright** future.

 _Falling in the black_

 _Slipping through the cracks_

 _Falling through the depths, can I ever go back?_

 _Dreaming of the way it used to be, can you hear me?_

 _Falling in the black, slipping through the cracks_

 _Falling through the depths, can I ever go back?_

 _Falling inside the black_

 _Falling inside, falling inside_

 _The Black_


End file.
